This slender plant, with juicy stems and long, speared-shaped leaves, has an acidic green apple-lemon taste that can be an intense tart counterpoint to rich or creamy flavors. It is most often cooked to tame its tartness, but a few small, young uncooked leaves can brighten the flavor of a green salad. When sorrel's vibrant green leaves are cooked, they change to a drab olive green and melt into a delicious puree. This plant, greatly prized in France, is not always available commercially so it is a good one to have in the garden.

Hardy, easy to grow with a long harvesting period. Sun to light shade, moderately fertilize, well drained soil and average, moderate watering.

Just before using, rinse the greens in a large bowl of cold water, lifting them to allow any dirt to sink to the bottom. Repeat with fresh batches of cold water until no more dirt is visible. Shake off the excess water and allow the greens to air and dry on paper towels. Strip and discard the stems from the leaves. Use a stainless-steel knife to chop the leaves; a carbon-steel knife will react with the oxalic acid present in the leaves, causing them to discolor.

SORREL SOUP
Serves 4
From The San Francisco Plaza Farmer's Market Cookbook, by Christopher Hirsheimer and Peggy Knickerbocker.

This simple soup lets the tart taste of sorrel shine through. Top each serving with a spoonful of crème fraiche or sour cream, if you like.

2 tablespoons butter
3 or 4 leeks, white part only, chopped
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
1 large russet potato, peeled and chopped
4 cups chicken stock, or as needed
2 bunches sorrel, stemmed and chopped
Chopped fresh chives for garnish

In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the leeks, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring often, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the potato and 4 cups stock, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the potato is very soft, about 20 minutes.

Add the sorrel and cook for a minute or so. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, ladle into warmed bowls, garnish with the chives, and serve hot.

Or, after adding the sorrel and cooking for a minute or so, let the soup cool slightly and, working in batches if necessary, puree in a blender or food processor until smooth. If serving hot, pour the pureed soup into a clean pan and reheat until piping hot, adding stock if needed to achieve a good consistency. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, ladle into warm bowls, and garnish with the chives. To serve chilled, pour the pureed soup into a bowl, thin with a little stock if needed to achieve a good consistency, let cool completely, cover, and refrigerate until well chilled. Taste and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper, ladle into chilled bowls, and garnish with chives.

SORREL SAUCE
Makes about 1 cup,
From The San Francisco Plaza Farmer's Market Cookbook, by Christopher Hirsheimer and Peggy Knickerbocker.

Renowned cookbook editor Judith Jones, who championed Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, among many other classic titles, makes this classic French sauce from the sorrel that she grows in her Vermont garden. For a richer flavor, stir in a big spoonful of demi-glace as the sorrel cooks. This is the perfect sauce to serve with grilled fish.

 1 tablespoon butter
 1 large shallot, minced
 5 cups stemmed and finely chopped sorrel
 1/2 cup heavy cream
 Salt and fresh ground white pepper

 In an enameled cast-iron or other non-reactive skillet, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring often, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the sorrel and cook, stirring often, until the leaves are wilted and have melted into a puree, 5 to 10 minutes.

Pour in the cream and bring to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and serve warm or at room temperature.

Resources:
The San Francisco Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market Cookbook, by Christopher Hirsheimer and Peggy Knickerbocker

Go green tip of the week:

Happy Earth Day!
(Sunday April 22nd)

This coming Earth Day feels like “Happy new Year” to me… I feel like celebrating, and I am feeling compelled to make some New Year’s resolutions, only make them ” Earth Day Resolutions”. These resolutions seem much more important to me. In the past I have resolved to do many things, and soon lost interest, or resolve, but it never turn out ” Earth Shattering” if I didn’t keep them up. It was never a matter of life or death, as these may well be. These new resolutions are much more important to me, and to everyone on this planet. I am going to take them seriously.

Sometimes you have to take baby steps to get where you want to go. I am learning a lot these days, as there is so much information available on the Internet. Today, I found some entertaining information about a guy and his wife and child, who have decided to go a whole year without creating any waste…Zero! Living this way is exemplary, but it is not going to happen overnight for most of us. You can read his blog at:
http://noimpactman.typepad.com/blog.

While I was researching, I found a site where you can look at and calculate your carbon emissions and find at ways to reduce them. http://reference.aol.com/planet-earth/globalwarming/calculator

Baby steps are the idea behind a daily e-mail being sent out by Green Options web site. From there you can sign up for their “30 days to a greener you” program. http://www.greenoptions.com

Tired of all that junk mail? Tired of all of the wasted money and paper (trees) going into the trash? I found this wonderful site where you can opt out of getting unwanted credit offers for 5 years. https://www.optoutprescreen.com

This week think about what resolutions you can make, and have a ” Happy Earth Day”!